Dr Chris Hobbs
BSc (Hons) MBBS (Imperial), MRCS (Eng), DLO (RCSEng), MD (Bristol), FRCS ORL-HNS (Eng)

Education and Training

Dr. Chris was awarded the top undergraduate scholarship to study medicine at St. Mary’s Hospital Medical School, Imperial College London. After graduation, he underwent surgical training in London, Bristol and Birmingham. During this period, he won a prestigious Royal College of Surgeons Research Fellowship and spent two years as a clinical research fellow under the mentorship of Professor Martin Birchall, one of the world's leading laryngeal specialists. This culminated in the award of a medical doctorate from the University of Bristol and a Hunterian Professorship from the Royal College of Surgeons of England.

Subspecialty training

Dr. Chris spent two years in Australia, completing Advanced Fellowship training in Head & Neck Surgery and Laryngology / Voice at St. Vincent's Hospital in Sydney, and Head & Neck Oncology at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne. Fellowship awards include the Ellison-Cliffe Travelling Fellowship from The Royal Society of Medicine, the Lionel College Memorial Fellowship from The Royal College of Surgeons of England and the HCA International Foundation Travelling Scholarship. As well as having extensive experience in adult ENT surgery, Dr. Chris also specialises in paediatric ENT, having worked at The Royal Hospital for Children in Bristol and Birmingham Children’s Hospital in the UK.​

Dr Chris with his mentors in Sydney - Assoc Prof Richard Gallagher and Dr Ian Cole

Specialist appointments

Dr. Chris was entered on to the General Medical Council’s Specialist Register in the UK in 2008 and was first appointed as a Consultant with Western Health in Melbourne in 2009. He came to Sinapore in 2011 and joined the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at Tan Tock Seng Hospital as a Consultant Head & Neck Surgeon. He was subsequently appointed Chief of the Head & Neck Cancer Service, Adjunct Assistant Professor with the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, and Clinical Senior Lecturer at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine. He joined the team at The ENT Clinic at Mount Elizabeth Novena Specialist Centre in 2017.

The ENT department, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, 2012

Dr Chris performing Transoral Robotic Surgery (TORS)

Clinical Interests

Dr. Chris' clinical interests include laryngology (swallowing & airway problems, voice disorders and chronic cough), thyroid and parathyroid surgery, head & neck cancer, ENT problems associated with SCUBA diving, and paediatric ENT. Since being in Singapore, he has continued to develop his skills in head and neck surgery by completing advanced training in transoral robotic surgery (TORS) and robotic thyroidectomy in Hong Kong and South Korea. Dr. Chris was subsequently part of the first team to perform TORS at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, and is also a fully accredited and trained in Laser surgery, Endoscopic Sinus Surgery, Coblation techniques and Sialoendoscopy.​

Research and Teaching

With a strong commitment to research and teaching, Dr. Chris has published widely on all aspects of Otolaryngology/Head & Neck Surgery and presented academic papers in the Australia, Canada, Europe, USA and the UK. Prizes include the ENT UK/Clinical Otolaryngology Review Prize, The Xomed-Treace Prize from the Otolaryngological Research Society and Section of Laryngology & Rhinology Research Prize from The Royal Society of Medicine. During his time in Australia, he was in charge of undergraduate otolaryngology teaching at the Western Hospital Campus of the University of Melbourne and was shortlisted for Tutor of the Year Award. Singapore appointments include founding and chairing the Head and Neck Oncology Research Group, research collaboration with Nanyang Technological University along with being the Head & Neck Lead for the Singapore National Healthcare Group Residency training program in ENT. He has taught on several international ENT courses in Australia and Southeast Asia, and was co-director of the Multidisciplinary Airway Rescue Simulation Training (MARST) course at Tan Tock Seng Hospital.

Professional Affiliations

The Royal College of Surgeons of England
British Association of Otolaryngologists and Head & Neck Surgeons (ENT∙UK)​
Singapore Society of Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery

​Personal Profile

Dr. Chris is a keen sports enthusiast, with a particular liking for rugby, AFL and cricket. When he had intact Achilles tendons, he used to enjoy long distance running and has completed full marathons in London, New York, Melbourne and Singapore. He now plays touch rugby to keep fit. Other interests include skiing, SCUBA diving, music and travel. He is married to an Australian and has three daughters.